Gas-engine.



N0. 838,013. PATENTED DEC. 11, 1906. J. W. EISBNHUTH.

GAS ENGINE. APPLIUATION FILLED MAR.23, 1905.

3 SHEETS-SHEET l.

Witness No- 838,013. PATENTED DEC. 11, 1906.

' J. W. EISENHUTH.

GAS ENGINE.

APPLIOATION FILED 11113.23, 1905.

s SHEETSSHEET a.

3x weMtoz witneoowa I I UNITED STATES",

JOHN W. ElSENHU'll-l, OF BROOKLYN or WEST VIRGINIA.

PATENT oFFIon.

, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE GAS-ENGINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

PatentedDee. 1 i. 1906.

Application filed March 23, 1905. Serial No, 251.679.

T at whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, JOHN W. EISENHUTH,

a citizen of the United States, residing at Brooklyn, in the county of Kings and State l of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Gas-Engines, (Case 13;) and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to improvements in gas-engines, and particularly to compound gas-engines in which high-pressure cylinders l5 and low-pressure cylinders operated by the exhaust from the high-pressure cylinders are employed.

It is the purpose of the invention to pro- Vide such an engine, so arranging the highpressure cylinders that a double-actinglowpressure cylirnler may be employed and a common crank-shaft may be used forreceiving power from the pitmen of all the eylinders.

The invention comprises certain novel constructions, combinations, and arrangements of parts, as will he hereinafter fullydescribed and claimed.

In the accompanying drawil'igs, Figure l a horizontal sectional view through a gasengine, the section being taken through the cylinders of the engine and through the valve casings and portions of the framing being broken away to show the crank-shaft and some of the connecting parts. Fig. 2v is a view, partiallyil'l side elcvationand partially .in vertical section, showing the arrangement of the high and low pressure cylinders and the connection of their pistons with a common crank-shaft. Fig. '3 is a vertical central transverse section of the machii'm, the framing of the machine being partially broken away and parts of the high-pressure cylinders being shown in section lo the rear of the low-pressure cylinder. Fig. 4 is atop plan view of a similar engine provided with liorizontally-arrange(l high-pressure cylinders and a verti(tally-arranged low-pressure cylinder, portions'of the engine being broken away to better show the parts. Fig. 5 is a side elevation of the same. Fig. 6 is a detail view showing one of the valves for coi'ltrolling the inlet of explosive charges to the high pressure cylinders and for admitting the exders are preferably grouped about the lowpressure cylinder and are arranged opposite to each other in pairs, so that the pitmen of the high-pressure pistons may extend to the same cranks upon the shaft of the engine. The high-pressure cylinders are preferably open at one end, so that explosive charges are applied to one side of the pistons, which high-pressure cylinder operates, therefore, as a four-cycle engine, one movement being employed to draw in the explosive charge of gaseous material, the return stroke being employed to compress the mixture for ignition after which the piston is driven back again by the explosion resulting, and upon the return the exhaust-gases are forced into the low-pressure cylinder and a new charge is drawn into the engine. Pistons 3 are provided-in each of the high-pressure cylinders and are connected by means of pitmen 4 and 5 with a crank upon the engine-shaft 6, which is arranged directly opposite thereto. Thus one set of pitmen 4 and 5 are connected with the crank 7, while the other set are connected with a crank 8. In order that the pitmen 4 and 5 of oppositely-arranged high-pressure cylinders may approach and properly engage the same crank, one of said pitm'en is bifurcated at its lower end, as indicated at 9, while the other pitman extends between the ends of the bifurcated portions.

The single and bifurcated ends of these meeting pitmen are provided with' bearings which engage the bearing portions of the cranks 7 and. 8. The ends of the high-pressure cylinders which hold the explosive gases. and which form the explodingchambers thereof are preferably provided with cooling means-such, for instance, as water-jackets 10, illustrated inthedrawings.

ranged in the middle.

other, The cylinder 2 is closed at both ends by cylinder-heads 12 and 13. The head 13 is formed with a central opening, and an elongated bearing 1 4 is formed therein, the walls of said bearing extending some little distance within the cylinder aswell as partly outside the same. The piston 11 is formed with an annular recess upon the side thereof which is adjacent to the bearing 14. The

said recess receives the inner edge of the bearing 14 when the piston is in the lower part of the cylinder. 'By this construction the piston can be made of sufficient depth to secure a good bearing upon the inner surface of the cylinderZ and can be provided with a sufficient number of paoking-rings to secure a tight joint'between the said piston and the walls of the cylinder. The central portion of the piston 11 is hollow and tubular, as at 16, the tubular stern thus formed upon the piston fitting snugly in the bearing 14 and reciprocating therein. A pitman 17 extends iilto the tubular stem or. barrel of the piston and is pivotally connected thereto, as at 18. The outer end of the pitman 17 is connected with a crank 19 formed upon the shaft 6.

The structure above described, whereby the piston-head is made of considerablelength and is provided with considerable bearingsurface engaging the walls of'the cylinder, is

of advantage also in that it makes it possible to properly control the exhaust from the said. low-pressure cylinder. In' order to accommodate the exhaust, a centrally-arranged outlet-port 20 is formed in the walls of the cylinder 2, and this port is only uncovered when the piston 1]. is at the extremes of its movement. It will thus be evident that when ressure is introduced into one end of the cy inder it will be retained within the cylinder and operate against the piston until it has driven the piston sufficiently close to the other end of the cylinder to uncover the port 20. Upon the uncovering of said port the exhaust willimmediately find its way out of cylinder. As soon as the piston is driven by a new charge to "the other end of the cylinder,

the new charge being placed upon the opposite side of the piston from the first charge, the exhaust-port will again be uncovered and a second charge will be permitted to exhaust. In this simple manner the exhaust can be controlled and pcrmitted through the action of the piston'within the low-pressure cylinder.

Thcpiston 1.1 is preferably made hollow, and the space within it is connected with the eascasing of the engine through the hollow stem or barrel portion" thereof.

llhc engine-shaft 6, together with the cranks, pitmen, and lower ends of the cylinders, may be embraced within a closing casing, as 21, for excluding dust and foreign subst anccs and also for permitting of the running of the parts in oil, if desired. I

Operating in conjunction with the moving shaft and the reciprocating pistons of the high and low pressure cylinders are valves for controlling the admission and passage of gaseous mixtures" and exhaust products through and from the engine. While I may employ any desired type of valves, I preferably use valves such as are shown in the drawings, and particularly in Figs. 1- and 6, which are of the revoluble type. Said valves are formed with hollow cylindrical heads 22,

which fit snugly in casings 23, within which thry may be turned or regulated. Actuatingstems or valve-rods 34 are connected with the said heads and project outwardly from the casings thereof to a point in suitable proximity to the working parts of the engine to receive motion therefrom. A simple manner of transmitting movement to the valves is illustrated in the drawings, the said valvestems 34 carrying beveled gears 35, which mesh with beveled pinions 36, secured'to the shafts 37, which are arranged counter to the engine-shaft 6. The counter-shafts 37 are driven by means of gearing which receives motion from the engine-shaft 6, such gearing usually consisting in a driving-pinion 38, se

cured to the shaft (i-and meshing with inter-- each side of. the engine and two countershafts 37 are employed, it is needful that two sets of gears 40 be provided, one gear for each shaft, and two intcrinediati-i pinions 39 interposed between the same and a single driving-pinion 38, carried by the ei'igineshaft 6. The valves are so constructed that when they are turned to one point in a rotating or oscillatory m'bvement they will admit of charges of gaseous material being drawn into the higlrpressure cylinders of the engine. Such charges of gaseous material are delivered to the engine through pipes il, which connect with branch pipes 42, leading to each of the adiacent high-pressurecylinders. The

The valves in order to properly perform their functions are made hollow, as shown in Figs. 1 and 6, and are provided with diametrically-arranged partitions 47, which divide the valves into two chambers. Ports 4S and 49 are formed in the walls of said valves, so as to communicate with the chambers upon the opposite sides of the partition 47. When avalve is turned in one position, a port 48 will cover the inlet-prt 43 and the cylinder-port 44, and a charge of gaseous mixture may then pass through the valve mechanism into said cylinder. When the valve is turned to another position, the port 48 will no longer connect the ports 43 and 44, and the port 49 willthus connect the ports 44 and 45, so that as the cylinder exhausts the exhaust-gases will be led into one end of the low-pressure cylinder. The valves opposite high-pressure cylinders 1 are; arranged to act, alternately, so that when one cylinder is being acted upon by an exploding charge of gases the cylinder opposite to it will be exhausting into one end ofthe low-pressure cylinder.

On the other side of the engine the same thing will occur, but in reverse order, and the exhaust from the highressure cylinders upon that side of the engine will be led into the opposite end of the low-pressure cylinder from that which receives the exhaust on the By this simple construction it will be evident that two of the high-pressure cylinders upon opposite sides of the machine are alternately operated by ex losive charges while the other two are ex austing intothe low-pressure cylinders.

The high-pressure cylinders of course are provided with suitable spark-producing devices, as 50, which are mounted in their upper ends and connected with any suitable source of electricity.

While the high-pressure cylinders may be arranged at an angle with respect to each other and with respect to the low-pressure cylinder, as indicated inFigs. ,1 and 2, the

' jackets, as 54, and hold the igniters 55.-

said high-pressure cylinders may have to be arranged horizontally, as shown in Fig. '4'

7 with the low-pressure cylinder'rising from the middle of the machine, as clearly seen in Fig. 5. In this instance the opposite highpressure cylinders are arranged upon the same line as an axis, and their pitmen 51 and 52 project toward each other and engage the same crank 53 upon the engine-shaft. In an engine of this structure'the outer ends of the high-pressure cylinders receive the explosive charges and are provided with water- .The gaseous material is conducted to the engine by means of pipes 56, which lead to branch )ipes 57,-connecting with valve-casings 58.

alves in these casings are operable-for'admitting the gaseous mixtures at the proper time into the adjacent cylinders. The valvecasings also are rovided with valves, as at 59, which centre the passage of the exhaustgases from the high-pressure cylinder through piping tov the low-pressure, cylinder 6]. Two of the oppositely-arranged high-pressure cylinders communicate with the lower end of the low-pressure cylinder, as shown in Fig. 5, while the other two communicate with the upper end of'said cylinder. Thelow-pressure cylinder '61 is constructed like the cylinder 2, and a double-acting piston is mounted therein. The cylinder 61 is also provided with a centrally-arranged exhaust exit or port 62, similar to the port 20 in the cylinder 2. The exhaust is thus controlled in its outlet by the movement of the piston within the low-pressure cylinder, as above described withrespect to the piston 11. The valves employed in the form of engine shown in Figs. 4 and 5 may be of the same type as that heretofore described or may be puppetvalves, as indicated at 63, the stems 64 of which extend outside the casing and engage cams 65, carried by the shaft66f The shaft 66 extends at right angles to the shaft of the engine and is provided with'a worm-gear 67, which meshes with a corresponding worm 68, carried by the engine-shaft. In this way the valve-operating cams are properly operated in timedrelation to the movement of the engine-shaft and the pistons in the cylinder of the engine. 'In this form of engine it is preferable to employ a check-valve, as at 69, where branch pipes lead into the low pressure cylinder from oppositely-arranged high-pressure cylinders, the said valve preventing the possibility of. back pressure in one cylinder while the other is in the act of. receiving an explosion. It will be evident that the type of engine shown in Figs. 4 and 5 will be admirably adapted for use where it v is desired to keep the weight of the engine as lowas possible. For this-reason such an engine'would be suitable for marine uses and the like. i

It will be evident that the minor details of construction in the engine and the exact arrangement of. the cylinders may be somewhat altered without departing from the spirit of the invention.

-.It will be evident from the above description that a very powerful rotary movement may be imparted to the engine-slntft by the employment of a group of high-pressure cylinders having an opposite or balanced relation to the shaft of the engine and a haw-pressure cylinder also properly connected with the shaft and that the gaseous mixtures introduced into the engine may be not only exploded. in the high-pressure cylinders for use,

but may lead in their exhaustingcondition plurality of high-pressure cylinders, two of said. high-pressure cylinders being arranged opposite each other to form pairs and slowpressure cylinder of greater diameter errenged between pairs of high pressure cylin- 'ders. one pair of high-pressure cylinders being connected with one end of the low-pressure'cylinder while the otherpair of highpressure cylinders is connectedwith the other end of the low-pressure cylinder, the lowpressure cylinder thus being operated by the exhausts from the pairs of hig i-pressure cylinders, pistons moving in all of said cylinders and e crank-shaft connected with all of said pistons.

2. A com )ound gas-engine, comprising a lurality of high-pressure cylinders arran ed or receiving ex losive charges at one em a lowpressure cy indcr arranged between the high-pressure cylinders and arranged for receiving exhaust charges from the highn'essure cylinders at each end, etrunk-piston shaft, a low-pressure cylinder arranged adjacent to the high-pressure cylinders, means for connecting both ends of the low-pressure cylinder with the exheustputlets of the highpressure cylinders, e double-acting piston mounted in the low-pressure cylinder and e pitinan connecting the same with the said crenkrsh'eft.

4. A- compound. gcssengine, comprising plurality of high-pressure cylinders open :xt one end, a lowpressure cylinder mounted adjacent thereto and closed at both end s, the head it one end of the cylinder being provided With'r, central elon'gr'ited hearing, the herring extending into the low-pressure cylinder c considerable distance,- a piston moving in the cylinder and provided with en 5511-, nulcr recess on one face for fitting around the srid elongated bearing, a tubular projection formed upon the piston and projecting into the s id lIGfllDg, cn engine-sheila mounted in rlincmcnt with the axes of all of seid pistons and pitmen connecting the pistons of the cylinders with the staid. shaft.

' 5. A compound gee-engine, comprising a piston moving in the low-pressure cylinder and formed. with a hollow tubular extension engaging the said elongated bearing of the cylind er-heed, the said piston being also provid ed with an annular recess for receiving the inner end of-the said bearing and permitting of a full-length stroke of the piston within the cylinder, en engine-shaft suitably mount" ed in alinement with the cylinders, and a pitmcn pivotally mounted within the hollow extension of the low-pressure piston and connected with the engine-sh: it.

6. A compound gas-engine, comprising epproximctely upright high-pressure cylinders and an upright low-pressure cylinder of larger diameter than the higlnpressure cylin ders, the high-pressure cylinders being errihnged around. the low-pressure cylinder, an engine-shzvft exte'n: ing opposite the ends nut in :linement with the axes of the said cylinders and formed with c crzlnk opposite ench cylinder, pistons moving in all of said cylinders, pitmen connecting the pistons with the cr .nks opposite their respective cylinders, means for introducing explosive charges into the ends of the high-pressure cylinders, means for eirecting the exhsustg; see from the high-pressure cylinders into the en 's of the low-pressure cylinder, and

menns for permitting of a int-l escape of the heust-gqses from the low-pressure cylin- 7L A compound gins-engine, comprising a centrally-mounted. verticcl low-pressure cylinrer, higlepressure cylinders arra ged in pairs upon eschside thereof and reversely inclined with respect to the cxis of the lowpressure cylinr. er, the sid high-pressurecyl inders converging towz'urd the engine-shaft, an engine crank-shaft mounted adjacent to the ends of the cylinders, pistons moving in all of scid cylinders, cranks formed upon the crtnlr-shcft respectively opposite the pairs of high-pressure cylinders and the low-pressure cylinder, the pitmen of each pair of highpressure cylinders being connected With the some crank, and valves controlling alternately the inlet of explosive chzrges to the higlnpressure cylinders and the pa'usssge of exhaust chcrges to the low-pressure cylinder.

in presence of two witnesses.

JOHN W. EISENHUTH.

In testimony whereof I ailix my signature Witnesses:

JOHN. L. i n'ronnn, GAs'snLL SEVERANCE. 

